Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Back in the mists of time - *cough* - ok, in 2009, I was a fairly new knitter with a few scarves under my belt. One was a giant garter-stitch scarf in Gryffindor colours, one featured mint and neon green stripes and ruffled ends (that started off as a mistake), and one was actually quite nice - a linen scarf in basket stitch which I gave to Willie.

And then I discovered two things that completely changed my crafting life: Ravelry and Knitty.

And I started knitting things like this anatomically-inspired heart, which I think was my first experience with knitting in the round. I used double-pointed needles and yarn held double, which wasn't easy...

And then I made these three-fingered gloves, which I remember struggling with. Double-pointed needles AND a cable needle added up to a handful of unruly spikes. But I got there, and the gloves were cool!

The fun patterns that were coming out began to spark ideas, like the alternative moustache shape I used on this cowl. I shared my moustache chart on my Ravelry project page, and it was a thrill to see a few people use it on their own cowls.

I had a go at whichever patterns inspired me, and built up a lot of new skills as I went. This hat (covered in fossil trilobites!) was my introduction to more complex texture with cables and bobbles. I'm keen to knit a new one actually, I love this design.

Eventually I took the plunge and knit an actual garment for myself. And I didn't choose a simple one - I went for it and chose one that looked AMAZING. It's knit in separate pieces, with complex cables on the front and back, and double-moss-stitch texture on the sleeves and sides. It took me about three months to knit, and I was super-proud when it fit!

I've since knit more things from Knitty (like my steekedIðunn cardie), and I have more things in my queue waiting to be knit (like these cute Geek Socks). I've also learned heaps from the articles, and refer back to them for reminders of particular techniques. And I still can't quite believe I have a pattern of my own in Knitty too. :)

Knitty is going through some changes at the moment, and I'm supporting it through Patreon so it can keep being awesome. I've got a massive amount out of it over the years, especially when I was a relative beginner. Easily accessible free patterns for stuff I actually wanted to make? And articles with tutorials for all the new tricks I wanted to learn? Gold.

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

I have a hat pattern in the latest issue of Knitty! This is really exciting for me, as I first got lured into knitting as a hobby by the fun, free patterns in Knitty. This is Droste Effect, a hat covered in cables inspired by the structure of stockinette stitch:

Features:

all-over cable pattern designed to look like stockinette stitch

crown decreases are integrated into the cable pattern

two sizes: adult small + large

a one-skein project: requires up to 185 yards of DK-weight yarn

full charted and written instructions

available for free!

The yarns I chose are two NZ yarns which have excellent stitch
definition, perfect for knitting cables. The brown hat (size L) was knit
using 2 balls of Skeinz Silver Lining in 'Clifton Stone', and the sea-green hat (size S) was knit using 1 skein of Vintage Purls Max in 'Abel Tasman'.

The name 'Droste Effect' is taken from the visual effect of a picture-within-a-picture, because the hat's cables represent a large-scale stockinette stitch (it's a knitting pattern that looks like knitting). Tins of Droste brand cocoa famously feature a nurse holding a tray with a cup and the same tin on it:

The photos were taken by Jos, my dad, when I was visiting Whakatane last. We went to one of my old childhood haunts - the playground by the river at The Heads. Bay of Plenty locals might recognise the rocks and Moutohorā/Whale Island in the background...

We also played around with the picture-within-a-picture idea... :)

Droste Effect is available as a free pattern here at Knitty.com.
Its Ravelry page is here.

Stats

Ravelry Store:

Loveknitting:

Craftsy Store:

To Download Patterns:

Click on any of the stores above, or click on the individual designs below to see their Ravelry pages...

Aether Shawl

Aether Cowl

Rainbow Cake

Leadlight

Budburst

Hextile Wrap

Beeswax Scarf

Cinnamon Stars

Silverwing

Folia Triangle

Folia Loop

Folia Crescent

Multifaceted Mitts

Multifaceted Mittens

Amarilli

Liquid Honey

Heartpops

Tailfeather

Rose Jam Mitts

Rose Jam Hat

Deco City

Above the Clouds

Droste Effect

Spacedust

Lunate

Kea

Fretboard

Ascent

Peacowl

Field of Stars

Paper Snowflake

Paper Boat

Paper Planes

Paper Hearts

Paper Crown

On the Record

Beeswax mitts

Beeswax cowl

Beeswax hat

Seaswell

Bushwalk Beanie

Bubble & Squeak

INSULATE! mittens

Mithrandir

Starstuff hat

Starstuff

Beachgrass

Bright Side

INSULATE! hat

Carrot Top

Dyer's Delight

True Colours

I Dream of Falling Blocks

Queen of the Night

Amy's Scarf

Baroque, adj. /bəˈrɒk, -ˈrəʊk/

1: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a style of artistic expression prevalent especially in the 17th century that is marked generally by use of complex forms, bold ornamentation, and the juxtaposition of contrasting elements often conveying a sense of drama, movement, and tension2: characterized by grotesqueness, extravagance, complexity, or flamboyance3: irregularly shaped - used of gems - 'a baroque pearl'Origin: French, from Middle French barroque and Portuguese barocco, irregularly shaped pearl. First known use: 1765

Purl, noun. /pəːl/

1: a knitting stitch made by putting the needle through the front of the stitch from right to leftOrigin: mid 17th century, of uncertain origin